The England striker wants his United colleague, reviled for his role in Rooney’s World Cup red card against Portugal, to rethink his demand to leave Old Trafford.

Ronaldo – who faces a torrid time from fans next season – is set on a move to Spain but United are insisting he honours a four-year contract signed last term.

Rooney has told pals Ronaldo remains a friend and wants him to be a team-mate for the upcoming campaign.

A source close to the Rooney camp said: “Wayne will be absolutely delighted if Ronaldo remains at United, and looks forward to playing alongside him next season. “It’s absolute b******s that Wayne wants Ronaldo out. That couldn’t be further from the truth. He still regards him as a mate.

“Wayne has said nothing on the matter to United. He’s a bigger man than that. He’s made no moves whatsoever. He doesn’t want him to leave.”

Rooney was expected to take revenge after voicing his disgust at Ronaldo’s antics during England’s quarterfinal defeat.

The Portugal winger seemingly encouraged the referee to send off Rooney after he appeared to stand on Ricardo Carvalho.

But despite Rooney’s efforts at peace-making, Ronaldo is still adamant he wants to move, with both Barcelona and Real Madrid being touted as possible destinations.

Wenger warning for Cole – Alex Livie, Sky Sports

Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger feels Ashley Cole would be better served to concentrate on his football rather than airing his dirty linen in public.

Cole whipped up a storm on Saturday morning when excerpts from his upcoming book were published in a national newspaper.

The England defender hit out at Arsenal, claiming they ‘hung me out to dry, using me as a scapegoat to get back at Chelsea’ over the controversy surrounding his meeting with The Blues last year.

Cole’s future as an Arsenal player is now in doubt again and although Wenger admits he would like to keep the left back in North London, the Frenchman feels his charge needs to focus on his duties as a footballer.

“I don’t like it when there is too much in the newspapers,” Wenger told Sky Sports News. “Football players are there to play football and not to talk too much.”

Responding to questions about Cole’s future, Wenger added: “He has two years on his contract at Arsenal and unless we sell him he has a future at Arsenal.

“I want him to stay, but there are three parties to have to want that.

“Nothing is decided yet on that front and he is an Arsenal player like everybody else.”

Wenger feels that, in time, Cole will look back on his Arsenal career with affection.

“With Ashley Cole, when one day he looks back on his career he will see Arsenal has helped him a lot and he is intelligent enough to make the difference”, said Wenger.

PortugalScolari extends Portugal deal – James Pearson, Sky Sports

Brazilian coach Luiz Felipe Scolari is to stay on as Portugal coach after signing a fresh two-year contract with the nation.

Scolari was wanted by The Samba Boys to replace Carlos Alberto Parreira, but he rejected the chance to regain control of his home country.

The experienced tactician has now put an end to speculation surrounding his future by committing himself to Portugal’s Euro 2008 qualifying campaign.

Following a strong 2006 World Cup in Germany where Portugal reached the semi-finals, Scolari will be expected to take the team to Austria/Switzerland in two years’ time.

Earlier in the summer Scolari was linked as a possible successor to Sven Goran Eriksson in charge of England, although he did not want to discuss his future until after the World Cup.

With the World Cup now out of the way he has successfully negotiated to extend his stay with Portugal, which began back in 2003.

About Kartik Krishnaiyer

A lifelong lover of soccer, the beautiful game, he served from January 2010 until May 2013 as the Director of Communications and Public Relations for the North American Soccer League (NASL).
Raised on the Fort Lauderdale Strikers of the old NASL, Krishnaiyer previously hosted the American Soccer Show on the Champions Soccer Radio Network, the Major League Soccer Talk podcast and the EPL Talk Podcast.
His soccer writing has been featured by several media outlets including The Guardian and The Telegraph. He is the author of the book Blue With Envy about Manchester City FC.
View all posts by Kartik Krishnaiyer →

Adu is leaving MLS for sure after this season. I hope he was just saying nice things about Celtic because DC was playing them because quite honestly he will not develop if he goes to the SPL. He needs to go to England, Spain or Germany to further his devlopment.

Adu will never make it in Europe. He is destined to imitate the great Landon Donovan since he is an equally spoiled brat who has been hearing how good he is since was a kid. Like Donovan he is spolied and will got to Europe and get eaten for lunch and then will retreat to the security of MLS for the duration of his underperforming career.

Rafael, Freddy needs to get out of MLS!!!!! If he doesn’t, he will never develop beyond a certain stage. MLS is a good league for getting young guys playing time if they are not going to get anything but reserve action in Europe. Adu however will be a regular on most clubs in the world, except the very top clubs. Maybe a mid table EPL club like Bolton or Charlton is the best place for him to go right now rather than a Man U or Real Madrid type squad.

Although Jose Mourinho’s concerns are firmly rooted in the defence of his Premiership title, the Chelsea manager was given a tantalising glimpse of seasons to come here.

A laboured 2-1 victory over DC United in the second game of their pre-season tour of North America riled Mourinho but he was cheered up by the display of Freddy Adu, the 16-year-old winger considered one of the hottest talents in world football.

Adu is already one of the biggest names in Major League Soccer and was first linked with Chelsea two years ago. He has been compared to Pele and while such compliments can only increase the pressure on such young shoulders, Adu played with a confident swagger which belied his years.

Article continuesMourinho found time to talk to Adu before the game but had to wait 45 minutes to see the prodigy in action. The 41,473 crowd raised their voices when he came on the pitch and demanded the Ghanaian-born American be given the ball on every occasion.

In one dazzling dribble, Chelsea’s new signing Lassana Diarra was turned inside out as Adu went through his array of tricks. The American fans cheered as if he had scored but might not be as happy to hear that he is already eyeing a move to Stamford Bridge.

“I definitely want to play for Chelsea one day,” said Adu. “They’re my favourite club in England. I spoke to Mourinho before the game, we were just having fun and he congratulated me on the goal I scored last week.

“He knew a lot about me already. Playing in the Premiership is a goal for me. I think I can achieve it if I keep working hard and keep my head on straight. All the Chelsea players impressed me. They’re great players, they have people like Frank Lampard, Arjen Robben and Damien Duff. Playing against them was great for me.

“They played hard and that is what it is all about. A move to Chelsea is a possibility for sure. I would love to play for them. At 18 I start exercising my options and I hope I get a call from a big club.”

Joe Cole, who played the first half for Chelsea, knows all about being a hyped-up teenager. The England international watched Adu from the sidelines and was in no doubt that he could make the grade. He said: “I thought Freddy did well. He showed some nice touches. It’s difficult to have a lot of pressure on young shoulders – which I know all about – but you just have to deal with it.

“As long as he keeps focusing on becoming an even better player and training hard, which I’m sure he is because he will have the right people around him, he will have a very good career. I wish him all the best.

“He would be good at Chelsea. He’s the sort of player who will be coveted all over the world because he’s a talent and all the good players are linked with Chelsea.”

Chelsea, perhaps wearied by the ferocious training regime on this trip, were at times made to look ordinary by a fired-up DC United side. The Premiership champions had coasted to victory against Milan but it was a different story at the home of the Wash ington Redskins. It took a smart block from Glen Johnson to prevent Joshua Gros from putting the home side in front.

The home fans sang “overrated” suggesting that, whatever the comparison in football terms, standards of chanting in the States have yet to reach Premiership quality.

They subsequently went wild when Bobby Boswell climbed unchallenged to head past Petr Cech after 31 minutes but their joy was short-lived.

Shaun Wright-Phillips crossed for Damien Duff to volley an equaliser four minutes later and Hernán Crespo scored the winner, his first goal for Chelsea since he returned from his Milan loan, after the break.

But it was Adu who made the greatest impression so it may not be long before he lines up in the Premiership in a blue shirt.

MLS owns Adu’s contract. The best DC United can hope for is a “future youth allocation.”

Considering DC has through the years traded to get better players even though they have consistently been hurt by the league due to the salary cap and quite frankly being too good, they always seem to rise back to the top. And they always have Jaime Moreno leading them!